By admin 
U.S. Rep. Russell Fry jumped into South Carolina’s U.S. Senate special primary Monday, saying he would compete for the Republican nomination left vacant by the sudden death of Lindsey Graham.
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“South Carolinians need a conservative fighter in the U.S. Senate who actually delivers results,” Fry said in a news release.
U.S. Rep. Ralph Norman also announced a bid Saturday and former congressional candidates Duke Buckner and Mark Lynch said they would file to replace Graham’s name on the ballot last week.
Fry is also running for another term in the U.S. House this November. The state Election Commission said candidates could run for two offices simultaneously, according to a Wednesday news release.
He made his announcement after President Donald Trump encouraged Darline Graham, the younger sister of the late Lindsey Graham, to run for the Republican U.S. Senate nomination. If she runs, Graham has the president’s coveted “complete and total endorsement,” Trump said in a social media post Friday afternoon.
Fry, 41, was elected after ousting a ten-year Republican incumbent who voted to impeach Donald Trump.
“Our state deserves a Senator who will stand with President Trump, not stand in his way,” Fry said in the news release Monday.
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Fry is serving his second term in the U.S. House, representing the Grand Strand and Pee Dee. Fry first beat incumbent Tom Rice to represent the 7th Congressional District in the 2022 Republican primary election. Rice voted to impeach Trump in 2021 following the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.
Before working in Washington, D.C., Fry served in the South Carolina House for seven years.
Scott Huffmon, a political science professor at Winthrop University, said Fry is popular among his constituents but does not necessarily have statewide name recognition yet.
Lindsey Graham died unexpectedly earlier this month. The longtime senator died July 11, with a preliminary report indicating he died from an aortic dissection — a tear in the aorta— due to arteriosclerotic cardiovascular disease. Darline Graham was nominated to finish out her brother’s term, which ends Jan. 3, 2027.
Filing for the race opens Tuesday at noon and closes a week later. The special primary election is scheduled for August 11. The winner of the August election will compete against Democratic nominee Annie Andrews in November.
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This is a breaking news story and may be updated
Reporter Joseph Bustos contributed reporting to this article